Rosin in Art

Pine rosin is an important ingredient in many
art techniques such as investment casting and intaglio plate making.

Investment Casting

Investment casting is an important metal
forming technique used by artists. In this method the original art piece such as
a sculpture is made out of wax. It is easy to form wax and carve intricate
design elements on it by hand tools. When the art piece is ready, it is covered
with a slurry of plaster that dries in a few days. The block of plaster is then
placed in an oven so that the wax can melt and exit. This will result a hollow
space inside the block of plaster with all details of the original artwork. This
is called a mold. Molten metal is then pored into the mold from the same hole
that molten wax exited. When the metal cools down and solidifies, the plaster is
broken and the art work that is now in metal instead of wax is removed. Some
final finishing and polishing is usually required to complete the piece. Many
jewelry items as well as silver or bronze sculptures are made with this method.
Rosin is an important ingredient of the wax used in investment casting. A
typical wax formula may include only beeswax and rosin. Additional materials
such as paraffin wax and stearic acid or zinc stearate may be added to reduce
the stickiness of the wax surface. Beeswax alone is too soft and may be damaged/
deformed when covered by plaster slurry. Rosin provides strength to the wax.

Intaglio

Intaglio is a group of techniques to incise a
design into a surface such as a metal plate. This metal plate is later used to
print the design. Some of the techniques used include etching, engraving,
drypoint and aquatint (mezzotint). All these techniques are used to form
groves into the plate surface. These groves will later hold ink that is used in
intaglio printing.

Etching process starts by applying an
acid resistant coating to the surface of metal. This coating that is known as
Hard Ground is usually made of asphaltum or tar, pine rosin and beeswax (or
paraffin wax). Artists use different pointed tools to scratch the hard ground
that will remove or erase the hard ground without scratching the metal. The
plate is then placed in acid bath to be etched where hard ground is removed.

Aquatint is another intaglio technique
utilizing pine rosin. Aquatint uses powdered rosin to create a tonal effect. The
rosin is acid resistant and typically adhered to the plate by controlled
heating. Later when the plate is submerged in acid, only the areas that are not
covered by rosin will be etched.

I need images that illustrate each application
described in this page. If you have such images that you can share please call
me.

Thanks,

Mohammad Hamzeh

Rosin for Intaglio (Hard
Ground and Aquatint)

Honduran
rosinwith product code HROSIN is the best choice for making hard
ground. This rosin usually comes in chunks or crushed. Honduran pine rosin can
easily mix with tar, beeswax, paraffin wax and other additives of hard ground as
needed.

Brazilian Rosin with product code BROSIN is the best choice for making
rosin powder and using it for aquatint. Do not use ready made rosin powder for
aquatint if possible. Commercially available rosin powders are not pure. They
contain other powders to prevent or slow down formation of clumps. It is best if
you grind and sift your own rosin as needed. You can store your rosin powder in
sealed glass jars in a cold place such as refrigerator.

Where to buy gum rosin or pine rosin?

Where to buy Rosin?

Our rosin products are available for sale at
www.ChemicalStore.com. For large orders please call in advance and verify the
availability, wholesale discounts and shipping options. If you cannot find any
product in the online store of your choice, please use the search option of the
store or call (973)405-6248 for further assistance.

All orders will be shipped from our
warehouses in United States (USA). We ship worldwide
to most countries including U.S., Canada, Australia, United Kingdom, New
Zealand, Germany, France, Netherlands, and many other countries.